Nevado Veronica 5,911m 4D/3N

Nevado Veronica is a very impressive, pyramid shaped mountain that towers over Ollantaytambo in the Sacred Valley of the Incas, it is the highest peak in the Cordillera Urubamba. Veronica is a name the Spanish gave the peak, but its real name is “Weqewillka” in Qechua, which means “sacred tears”. The first ascent in 1956 was led by the famous French mountaineer Lionel Terray. The access to the mountain is relatively easy, but it does require a certain amount of technical ability and experience to climb. There are roughly 450m of terrain between 50° and 70°. Also, before the glacier starts there is a rope length of 5.8 rock climbing.

The itinerary:

Day 1 Cusco – Base Camp (4,900m)

We take an express van about two hours to the Abra Malaga. This is the same Abra Malaga where the people start their descent by bicycle in the Inca Jungle Trek. From here we will port our gear up 3 hours to a Base Camp at 4900m below the NE face of Nevado Veronica.

Day 2 Base Camp – Advance Camp (5,050m)

This is a relatively easy day going up to the edge of the glacier, only 1.5 hours of hiking.

Day 3 Advance Camp – Summit (5,911m) – Base Camp

We will awake at 12am and leave the tent by 1am. The climb should take about 9 or 10 hours to make the summit and then another 4-5 hours to get back down to Base Camp.

Day 4 Base Camp – Return to Cusco

The next morning we will sleep in as much as we want, eat breakfast and then pack up camp and then walk down the valley to where it meets the road. Here we will take transportation back to Cusco and arrive around 2pm.